Gaston County, North Carolina
Gaston County is a county in North Carolina. The population of the county is 206,086. Major roads Interstate 85 US Route 29 US Route 74 US Route 74 Business US Route 321 US Route 321 Business North Carolina Highway 7 North Carolina Highway 16 North Carolina Highway 27 North Carolina Highway 150 North Carolina Highway 161 North Carolina Highway 216 North Carolina Highway 273 North Carolina Highway 274 North Carolina Highway 275 North Carolina Highway 279 Geography Adjacent counties Mecklenburg County (east) Lincoln County (north) York County, South Carolina (south) Cleveland County (west) Demographics As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the racial composition of the county is: 74.81% White (154,172) 15.89% Black or African American (32,747) 6.36% Hispanic or Latino (13,107) 2.94% Other (6,060) 14.6% (30,088) of Gaston County residents live below the poverty line. Theft rate statistics Gaston County has above average rates of Pokemon theft and murder. A more accurate tally can be given when all city and town bios in the county are complete. Pokemon Communities Cities Belmont - 10,076 Bessemer City - 5,340 Cherryville - 5,760 Gastonia - 71,741 Lowell - 3,526 Mount Holly - 13,656 Towns Cramerton - 4,165 Dallas - 4,488 Dellview - 13 High Shoals - 696 McAdenville - 651 Ranlo - 3,434 Spencer Mountain - 37 Stanley - 3,556 Unincorporated communities Alexis Ashebrook Park Boogertown Brown Town Crowders Hardins Lucia Mountain Island South Gastonia Springdale Tryon Climate Fun facts * Between 1845 and 1848, Gaston County experienced an industrial boom. During this three-year period, the first three cotton mills in the county were established. Some authorities say that the first one was established by Thomas R. Tate on Mountain Island, near the present site of Duke Energy's Mountain Island Dam and Hydroelectric Station. Other sources say that the first mill was established by the Linebergers and others on the South Fork River near McAdenville. Most sources agree that among the first three mills in operation in the County was the Stowesville Mill, founded by Jasper Stowe and Associates in the South Point Community south of Belmont. Gaston County still leads all other counties in the country both in the number of spindles in operation and in the number of bales of cotton consumed. * On July 15, 1949, WBTV, the CBS affiliate for the Charlotte area, broadcast the first commercial television signal in the Carolinas from its transmitter on Spencer Mountain. WBTV's transmitter remained on Spencer Mountain until 1984, when a new transmitter tower was completed in Dallas, North Carolina, in the north-central portion of Gaston County. The old transmitter tower on Spencer Mountain has since been truncated, but it is still in use by various groups, including NOAA, and local amateur radio clubs. * Politically, Gaston County is strongly Republican in most elections. * In the South Point area lies Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. * McAdenville is the headquarters of Pharr Yarns. The company has operated a yarn manufacturing plant in the town since 1939. It is the town's largest employer and the 7th-largest employer in Gaston County. * Crowders Mountain State Park is the largest natural heritage site in the county. It covers over 3,000 acres (12 km2) of topographically, botanically, and zoologically diverse land. Six natural plant communities are found in the park, and the area supports a diversity of wildlife species. Some animals documented in the park have not been documented elsewhere in the county. A second natural heritage site, Pinnacle Road, has recently been incorporated into the park. This site is most significant for the occurrence of Dwarf Juniper (Juniperus communis) along its ridgeline. * The Gaston County Electric Mills are located near High Shoals. Category:North Carolina Counties